The single aliquot regenerative dose protocol: potential for improvements in reliability

This paper examines the effects of optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) components, other than that usually termed the fast component, on dose determination by the single-aliquot regenerative-dose (SAR) protocol. Results are presented for "dose recovery tests", in which a known laboratory dose, delivered after optical bleaching at room temperature, is measured using the SAR protocol. Data obtained using either the initial OSL signal or the fast component, derived by curve fitting, are compared. Dose recovery tests are also carried out when an additional step is added to the SAR protocol, aimed at reducing recuperation, i.e. the residual signal observed in a SAR cycle when no regenerative dose is applied. The results for quartz from various sources indicate much improved dose recovery when only a well-separated fast component is analysed. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.